As my mum approached her 50s, she started experiencing some uncomfortable symptoms of menopause, such as anxiety and hot flashes. In fact, many women around her age also come to suffer from similar or other menopausal symptoms, which could include irritability, headaches, breast tenderness, fluid retention, and mood swings.

If only there is something that could help them (and one day, myself).

Well, nature has indeed provided women with a precious herb to help them tide through this period of hormonal change.

This herb is native to North America, but is also found in Europe and other areas in the Southern hemisphere. The seeds of this plant are rich in the rare essential fatty acid gamma-linolenic acid (GLA), which is crucial in hormonal balance (which is lacking in ladies experiencing perimenopause or menopause).

This plant is the evening primrose. Its fragrant yellow flower opens in the late afternoon and evening, hence its name.

Besides helping ladies in their golden years deal with the issue of menopause, GLA in evening primrose oil has also been found to aid in the prevention and alleviation of many degenerative diseases, such as hardening of arteries, heart diseases, multiple sclerosis and high blood pressure. GLA also has anti-inflammatory properties, and hence has been used in treating arthritis. It has also been shown to promote liver regeneration.

It seems that evening primrose can also help reduce the risk of breast cancer, which is found to be higher in women who have gone through menopause.

Cindy L. TJOL is trained in Psychology, Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine. She has several years of experience writing on natural health on the internet. Follow her on her blog and read her other articles at Insights On Health.com.